Passion In the Snow
by Laerkstrein
Summary: While traversing the rough terrain on the sacred Mount Gagazet, the party is forced to seek shelter from a blizzard within a small cave. But aside from a break, Lulu sees an opportunity to spend a little "quality time" with a legendary guardian.


**Disclaimer: **The characters used in this fic are the sole property of Square-Enix, Tetsuya Nomura, and anyone else with copyright on the _Final Fantasy _series. I own nothing, save it be my own plot ideas and original characters.

**Passion In the Snow  
**

**A/N: **This takes place just before the party reaches the summit of Mount Gagazet, where they encounter Seymour (who is a real pain). This is also a little continuation of my other Auron/Lulu fic, _Just This Once. _

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Snow. As far as the eye could possibly see. A large blanket of the beautiful white flakes had, as per usual, covered the entirety of the sacred Mount Gagazet. But now, as Yuna and her Guardians were venturing to the top of that holy place, a blizzard had come, forcing the party to retreat into a small hollow. The majority of the group huddled together at the back of the cave as the black mage, who had taken care to gather up kindling back in the Calm Lands, started a fire. And to think that she had almost allowed Tidus and Riku to talk her out of the menial task. The mage grinned to herself as she gently prepared the kindling within a ring of cold stones, stuffing a large clump of leaves beneath the arrangement of sticks.

Surely, had she surrendered her bearings and allowed herself to be coerced by the two teens, then the party would certainly have been in trouble. But, because of her undying dedication to her Summoner, they were now warm(er) within a small cave, that Auron had led them to, with a fire to boot. Lulu glanced at the two teenagers, taking note of the sheepish, apologetic looks on their faces. From the looks of things they were sorry, but Lulu would have to _hear _the words later.

Lulu cupped her hands together beside the leaves, allowing a small spurt of flame to shoot forth once she tossed it toward the kindling. The blaze burned brightly as the sticks and leaves began to spark, and the small group graciously huddled around the fire, still sitting close together. The mage smiled faintly, taking notice of the blond boy who so gently held Yuna in his arms. From the looks of things, dear Yuna had found love at last. Although she would never voice her feelings, the idea of Yuna having found someone worthwhile made her proud. Proud that her Summoner had enough sense to take care of herself, in some regard.

"Hey, Lu?"

The mage turned to see Wakka staring at her as he rubbed his arms in an attempt to keep warm. Without even asking, she knew what the blitzball captain was going to say. She knew him that well.

"We got anything to eat?"

She sighed, pointing at the travel packs that, had at one point, sat neatly in a row that had now been reduced to a messy pile. "You will eat what we have, Wakka," the mage said firmly. No one is leaving this cave until the blizzard stops."

As if mocking her words, Auron silently proceeded to the mouth of the cave, disappearing into the blizzard. Yuna gasped, and Tidus scoffed in disbelief, while Kimahri Ronso remained silent, and Wakka busied himself with finding a snack. The loud chattering of teeth reached the mage's ears as the young Al Bhed girl, Rikku, began scooting closer to Kimahri.

"It's cold!" she whined, burying her cold nose into the Ronso's furry blue arm. "I wanna go home!"

Lulu sighed, thanking whatever god existed that the party was no longer trapped on the scorching hot Bikanel Island. With the clothing she wore, the mage could easily survive the temperatures of Besaid, namely because she had lived through them from birth. But Bikanel was an entirely different scenario all together. One that the mage preferred not to think about. Lulu got to her feet and approached the pile of packs, searching quietly for Rikku's. Upon finding it, Lulu reached inside, withdrawing the small girl's bedroll.

"Here," she said soothingly, offering it to Rikku. "It might be a good idea to cover up. Don't you think?"

Rikku nodded, the look in her eyes expressing the stupidity she felt for not having thought of the bedroll sooner. She took it quietly, offering a meek "thank you" to the mage as she crawled inside, using Kimahri's strong arm as a pillow.

Once everyone had been happily situated, Lulu turned back to the mouth of the cave, wondering where Auron had wandered off to. The sound of footsteps from behind caught her attention, and the mage turned to see Yuna, who was now sitting between Kimahri and the empty space where Tidus, the boy they had found in Besaid, should have been. The footsteps started again, rushed this time. Lulu turned to see Tidus poking his head out into the storm. She shook her head, quickly rushing to the boy's side to usher him back to the fire.

"Go sit down," she said, giving him a light nudge. "You're to stay in here. Understand?"

The teenager grumbled as he refused to budge. "Well, I can't just let him sit out there," he said firmly, clearly referring to the man who had abandoned the shelter, presumably for some peace.

Lulu raised a perfect eyebrow as she glanced around the cave, nodding to acknowledge that the group was now short one legendary Guardian. She sighed and continued to insist that the boy return to Yuna's side. He did so reluctantly, an expression of concern visible on his youthful face as he took the young Summoner in his arms once again.

The mage planted her hands on her hips as she addressed the group, a stern expression on her pale face. "You are all to stay here," she said, leaving no room for arguments. "Kimahri is in charge," she added, as if they were all children who needed to have a responsible adult watching over them. With that made clear, the mage turned on her heel, heading out into the snow.

As she had anticipated, it was certainly cold outside. Far colder than she had expected, to be sure. She folded her hands into her fur-lined sleeves, wishing that she had something to cover her bare shoulders with. Mere seconds after this thought had run through her mind did she feel something warm and heavy close around her. The all-too-familiar scent of the red fabric wafted up to her nose, and she smiled, feeling a strong arm wrap around her waist.

"They're worried you've run off," she said as if she were referring to a couple of children. "Tidus in particular."

The only response the mage received was a rather indifferent "hmph," which was not the response she had been expecting. Nor had it been the one she had hoped for. She had wished for something more along the lines of charming and unusual rather than stoic. Lulu sighed, allowing her body to go limp so he would catch her and hold her in his strong arms. The sorceress glanced up at him, a playful smirk on her now chilled face.

"Not here," Auron said flatly. "Not enough privacy."

She stood up straight, leaning her head against his shoulder. "Then when? When will there be another chance? How long must I wait?" The mage leaned in closer, standing on her toes as she pulled down the collar that always obstructed his face. She ignored the one-eyed glare from behind his dark glasses, moving on to assault his face with licks and kisses. He couldn't make her stop, she decided. He couldn't make her do anything. All he could do was endure and, eventually, give in.

A smile crossed her face when he withdrew from her touch, probably due to the cold weather that had so gradually, and cruelly, stolen the warmth from her body. She leaned forward again, disappointed that he was still insisting on playing this game of tag with her. He drew back, leaning against the cold rock wall that stood solidly behind him. Lulu's smile widened, for she believed herself to have cornered him.

"No one will see," she said, trying to persuade and reassure him. "Please?"

He sighed heavily as she leaned against him again, allowing her to remove the collar and continue her assault. The mage smiled as she moved up his neck, making due with the little privileges she was being permitted. Lulu closed her eyes, reveling in the soothing feel of his arms around her. She felt him move, his breath suddenly hot against her cheek. The sorceress lifted her head, allowing him to nip at the soft, pale skin of her throat.

A weak moan escaped her parted lips as he moved up her throat to meet her lips in a crushing kiss. The powerful heat that grew quickly in the midst of passion was more than enough to warm the mage, bringing a light blush to her cheeks. She gasped lightly as he slid to the ground, pulling her into his lap as the kiss continued. A chill ran down her spine as she felt his hand slip behind her head, pressing her closer to him.

She hung her head back, breaking away from the kiss as she exposed her throat again. Although she would never voice it, she rather enjoyed listening to Auron entertain himself as he made busy with what skin of hers he could reach. But he leaned over her, keeping her poised just above the cold snow as he dove into her mouth again. Clearly, he wasn't interested in playing games with her. Lulu sighed as their tongues danced, praying to whatever god there was that this moment would never end.

But the sound of Yuna's voice, calling both their names, interrupted it all. And the little fantasy in which Lulu found herself came crashing to a screeching halt. Auron broke the kiss, pulling the mage to her feet as he stood. She glanced up at him, begging for more. But the gleam in his eye told her that duty came before passion. Reluctantly, she followed him back inside, pulling the massive coat tightly around her as she contemplated the passion in the snow.

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Voila! I'm pretty dang sure I kept them in character here as well. The only surprise? It's three in the freaking morning and I'm _still _awake playing _Final Fantasy X. _Take my advice: Go to bed at a reasonable hour. That way, you won't be doing what I'm doing right now. And you won't be hoping that you wake up around seven in order to clean your vehicle before the heat of the day ruins everything. But that's just me and my plans. You should still take my advice, though.

All rambling aside, I hope that this was a pleasant (and imaginative) read for you. Please review. :)


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